Category: Donors’ Stories of Giving

It almost seems like if all the people involved in making a new pedestrian, bicycle and fishing bridge connecting the Little Chute and Kaukauna trail networks happen were to link hands, they, too, could stretch 1,133 feet across the Fox River. Work started almost three weeks ago but a ceremonial groundbreaking Tuesday (Aug. 18) officially […]

How a Life-long Passion for Golf and “God Wink” Moments Benefit Our Community Growing up across from a golf course in Appleton, Mary Beth’s love of the sport began at age six when she received her first set of golf clubs. With a strong work ethic and a love to practice, Mary Beth went on […]

Mary Beth Nienhaus donates $50,000 to the Thompson Center on Lourdes matching gift campaign. By Liz Neuman, Executive Director, Thompson Center on Lourdes The Thompson Center on Lourdes (TCoL), proudly announces the Nienhaus $50,000 Matching Grant Campaign! TCoL board member Mary Beth Nienhaus has generously opened the door of opportunity for us to strengthen our […]

Play fair. Learn to share. Show you care. That was the answer to any dispute for Matty Mathison’s family growing up with eight siblings in the small Winnebago County town of Winchester. She heard it so often, Matty would recite it before Mom or Dad had the chance. An avid bicyclist and a longtime Shawano-area […]

John and Connie Meinke are clear about what their charitable passion is, but rather than it being a particular organization, their passion is for an issue — hunger. In the community foundation world, that’s tailor-made for a field of interest fund. It’s more focused than the usual donor advised fund, but not directed at a […]

Of the eight grants awarded from the new David L. and Rita E. Nelson Family Fund within the Community Foundation, the largest was most clearly something David would have supported. The Community Foundation announced Tuesday that it had received an estate gift of more than $100 million to create a donor advised fund that will benefit causes important […]

The Tim and Joy Neuville Family Fund within the Waupaca Area Community Foundation (WACF) has awarded its $50,000 Forward Together Grant to Catalpa Health to open a mental health clinic for young people in Waupaca this fall. “We were just blown away by the support of the Neuvilles and the community as a whole,” Lisa […]

The new Tri-County Community Dental Clinic mobile bus is an amazing example of community need being supported by many generous donors in the community including two donor funds within the Community Foundation. The entire cost of the $650,000 mobile clinic was completely covered before the bus was even delivered two days before last Christmas! Just […]

Attending Appleton’s Flag Day Parade was a big deal for  Robert and Sis Balliet and their family, dating back to the 1950s. “It was something that Mom would put on the family calendar and we would all look forward to parade day,” said their son, Dan. “We each had our own duties for what to […]

Walt Zerrenner and his wife, Aline, today and in 1964. When Walt Zerrenner walked through the Community Foundation’s doors in March, he had a love story on his mind. His wife of 54 years, Aline, has been living with Alzheimer’s for the past decade, and Walt wanted to set up a fund to honor her […]

A charitable fund established in memory of the owners of a cheese factory in Potter will award its first grants in April — up to $5,000 — to one or more public or school libraries from among six Calumet County communities. Applications are due April 28 at 4 p.m. The Violet and Ruben Laack Memorial Fund […]

On September 30, the Community Foundation hosted its annual Himebaugh Legacy Circle celebration at the Fox Cities Environmental Learning Campus at Bubolz Nature Preserve. The Himebaugh Legacy Circle recognizes those who have made future plans for their favorite charitable causes through a bequest or similar deferred gift to the Community Foundation. This event honored the […]